


City of Shame

by Basic_fangirl17



Category: SKAM (TV), The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Evak - Freeform, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-09
Updated: 2017-07-15
Packaged: 2018-11-29 22:03:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,784
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11449950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Basic_fangirl17/pseuds/Basic_fangirl17
Summary: Isak Valtersen is just your regular Shadowhunter - skilled and deadly.Even Bech Naesheim is just your regular mundane teenager (who has had the sight all his life)What happens when their worlds collide? They soon realise that they must learn to trust each other, despite all their beliefs to the contrary, as they face a mysterious enemy that threatens to destroy everything that makes their world special.AKA: The SKAM and Mortal Instruments crossover no-one asked for.





	1. When we first met

It was an ordinary day at the Oslo institute when everything Isak thought about his life changed forever.

He was sat on a stool in the weapons room, sharpening his set of daggers - his messy blonde hair dangling just into his eyesight. Sighing, he placed the newly sharpened dagger next to the other three in the set - admiring how they sparkled in the sunshine. In a beautiful moment of nostalgia, he was brought back to his tenth birthday when he received these daggers from his parents. He saw their smiles, as he ripped open the wrapping paper, and shrieked loud enough that the whole institute heard him. Isak sighed at the happy memories, and realised he needed something else to distract his wandering mind, before he was vividly brought back to a less happy memory. He looked upwards from the daggers on his lap and stared out of the large windows in front of him. Isak could insult this institute as much as he wanted - and he frequently did - but he could never deny that the views were incredible. It honestly didn't matter which window you looked out of, there was always something beautiful facing you. It had always struck Isak as slightly odd that the builders of the Oslo institute had chosen to build slightly outside of the town centre, but he never complained, because it was visually more pleasing for him to be situated where they were. From the weapons room, the busy streets below glittered in the early morning sunshine. The people moved in and out of the large buildings, as they navigated their way around. For a brief flickering moment, Isak wondered what it would be like to be as innocent and ignorant to the horrors of the world as the mundanes were. He began to wish that he had lived a normal childhood and gone to school to meet friends and the person he was going to marry. No, he thought, stop. That is a different life to the one I live – there’s no point in dwelling on that. Without warning, the heavy wooden door burst open with a bang. Startled, he jumped up and spun around to face the door, wielding one of the daggers and allowing the other 3 to drop to the floor with a crash. Eskild - the head of the institute - waltzed in, a large cape flowing behind him (Isak had told him once he was appointed as the head that the cape was unnecessary, but Eskild had scoffed at him and walked off). It was interesting, Isak thought, that Eskild hadn’t entered the room with his normal level of flare and sass. 

“Good reflexes – you’re improving,” he spoke with a smirk on his face that frustrated Isak slightly. Eskild had disturbed his relaxation time, after all.

“What do you want, Eskild?” Isak sighed as he turned his back to Eskild and crouched on the ground to begin tidying the daggers on the floor. In that second, he wondered if Eskild had seen through his thoughts and was here to reassure him that the shadow world was where he belongs – not that he needed reassuring. 

"I wanted to check that you were doing okay, because you..." Eskild trailed off hesitantly once he saw Isak turn his head slightly - just enough for Eskild to see the lack of patience that Isak was visibly showing.

"Eskild. Spit it out - I'm not in the mood for your games." Isak spoke in a monotonous voice in an attempt to prove to Eskild that he couldn't be bothered to converse. It worked, and made Eskild shift on his feet slightly before clearing his throat to speak. This had better be worth it, Isak thought to himself. 

“I just want to tell you something. Please don’t get too mad, but…amundanewillbelivingwithus” Eskild muttered, as he looked around the room nervously. 

“What?” Isak asked, as he spun around and fully faced Eskild - placing all 4 daggers on the stool he was previously sat on. Eskild visibly gulped, obviously nervous about Isak’s reaction to this news. There was a hesitant moment of silence as Isak stared Eskild down.

“A mundane is coming to live at the institute.” There was a long silence, as Isak tried to meet Eskild’s gaze. 

“What the hell Eskild? WHY?” Isak tried his best to stay calm, but his anger was breaking through. “Do they have the sight? Or are they just anyone you could pick up on the street? You know that it is forbidden to bring Mundanes into institutes!” Isak tried to reason his anger with the rules set by the Clave, but neither one of them believed that this was the reason Isak was angry. 

“Look, I can promise you Isak, there are extenuating circumstances. Besides, he seems like a really nice guy. Who knows, you might even get on.” Eskild sighed as he tried to reason with the hot-headed teen in front of him. "I have already cleared this with the Clave, and they agreed that he needs our protection!" 

“Eskild, just make sure he stays out of my way. I have a job to do, and it doesn’t involve anything about mund - ” Isak was cut off mid-sentence, when he peered behind Eskild, and saw a tall handsome man staring back at him from the doorway of the door to the weapons room. He smirked at Isak, and strode confidently into the room. Eskild heard the footsteps from behind him, and moved so that he was standing next to Isak - facing the mysterious intruder. It was rare that Isak was lost for words, but here he was - unable to finish his sentence. Hell, he couldn't even remember what he was talking about. He could hear the footsteps echoing his racing heartbeat, as this mysterious boy with blonde hair stopped just centimetres from Isak’s face.

“Hi,” He spoke with an ease and tone that Isak envied and adored in equal measures. “I’m Even.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave any thoughts below - I have a rough idea where I'm going but if y'all have any ideas, I will listen willingly!  
> Much love xx


	2. When we first spoke

Isak was completely stumped. Mundanes weren't supposed to be this confident.  
“Err, hi, I’m - ” Isak began, immediately frustrated with himself at how nervous he sounded.

“Isak, yeah, I know.” Even interrupted, smirk still plastered all over his face, making Isak’s blood boil with hatred. He’s enjoying this, he thought with anger brewing inside him. “Everyone has told me all about you.”

“Everybody?” Isak questioned with slight surprise creeping into his voice. He hated how that Even was forcing him to put so much emotion into his voice every time he spoke. Emotions area weapon, and whoever this Even guy was, he was a master at wielding them. Isak didn’t understand how Even was invoking this emotion into him – he learned from an early age to never show anyone how he felt, and it had kept him alive thus far.

“Yeah, everybody. Your parabatai told me I wouldn’t be able to miss you if I followed the trail of ‘angsty teen’. I believe that’s how he phrased it, anyway.” Even’s voice was laced with so much innocence that was unmistakably mundane but with as much conviction as a Shadowhunter. He was an enigma to Isak, and that made him dangerous. Reading other people came easily to Isak, as many people pasted their emotions all over their face, or failing that, it would be screamed at him with their body language. But, Even – he was a whole different ball game, and one that Isak didn’t feel like playing right now.

“If you’ll excuse me, Even, I have things to do.” He spoke with as much conviction as he could muster, and brushed past Even. He turned back to see that Eskild was about to interject that Isak had nothing he had to do, but he silenced him with his glare as he stormed out of the room. Isak wasn’t entirely sure who he was more angry at; himself, this Even guy, or everyone else in the institute. It was a close race, but Isak didn’t really care. All he knew was that he was angry.

Isak made his way to the kitchen, where he saw all the other members of the institute, split off into their different friendship groups. You had the girls – Eva, Noora, Chris, Sana and Vilde – who were all sat at the dinner table, gossiping about how hot the mundane was (this made Isak roll his eyes and sigh silently), and the boys – Jonas, Magnus and Madhi. Isak hesitantly made his was over to speak to the group of boys who were standing next to the fridge – preventing any anger from making his behaviour too irrational. Before he reached them, however, Jonas spotted him and was drawn out of his witty conversation with the others.

“Isak! Hei!” Jonas spoke loudly, as if to silence the gossiping from the girls’ table. “How are - ” but, Jonas was cut off immediately as Isak spoke,

“Why did you say that about me to Even?” Isak asked, attempting to prevent anger from faltering his voice. He knew he had failed at that.

“Say what?” Jonas tried to feign innocence, but Mahdi and Magnus who were standing on either side of him, were visibly trying to hold in their laughs. Jonas hit them both lightly in a failed attempt to silence them. Isak just stared him down instead of answering, and Jonas caved under the glare.

“Okay, Isak, I’m sorry, it was just a joke,” Jonas spoke with conviction, and to Isak, the apology seemed genuine. He felt his anger dissipate into nothing at the sound of his parabatai's apology. That was one thing that he always loved about Jonas was his inability to tell a lie. His honesty had always been so endearing to someone who always bottled his emotions – and if Isak was honest with himself, he had always wished he could be more like Jonas. Not that he would ever admit that to his face. He sighed and gave a small smile to his best friend, and he lowered his gaze slightly.

“It’s okay, it just caught me a little off guard.” Isak lied easily, and tried to relax in the company of friends. He wasn’t really that sure if that is the proper name for these people, but they’re all he’s ever had. Hell, they could even be family for all Isak knows about that too. “Sorry for going off on one.”

“Nah, man. It’s chill.” Jonas smiled back at him, and moved next to Isak and placed his arm round his shoulder in a brotherly show of affection that made Isak grin. Isak heard a sigh, as he turned around and saw the girls exchanging disappointed looks with each other

“Dammit! I thought that was going to be interesting. You guys are so boring.” Eva murmured, as she placed her chin on her hand and let out a long breath. There were many more grumbles coming from the girls’ table, but Sana just shrugged at Isak and gave a small smile. Isak had grown a deep respect for Sana since she had arrived at the institute a year ago. Isak had always known that shadowhunters do not engage in mundane religious beliefs, so when Sana walked in through the doors, hijab on her head, Isak dismissed her completely. She was cynical and dismissive of Isak in return, but they soon found that they were in fact similar in many ways. Both parties act out of rebellion. Sana had told Isak that her beliefs weren’t just to spite shadowhunter life, but that was merely an added bonus. When the Clave had questioned her about her religion, she stated that the hijab was there to keep the ichor from staining her hair. She had danced around the truth slightly, but did not lie – that was the quality that Isak recognised and respected with her. But, Isak soon realised that when you got to know her, Sana was kind and caring – you just had to be worthy of her affection.

“If you girls want a show, I will be more than happy to help you out.” Spoke a beautifully clear voice from the doorway. Dammit, Isak thought, he’s fucking everywhere.

“Even!” Sana spoke with a happiness that no-one could deny, and all of the girls turned to smile at him. He could have sworn he saw Eva bat her eyelids, and Isak rolled his eyes and shook his head in disapproval. He wasn’t that irresistible. When Even turned his gaze to focus at Isak, he mentally cursed, wondering if he’d accidentally said that out loud, and he could feel himself begin to blush. At his side, he noticed Jonas gesture for Even to come and join them, and Isak cursed under his breath. He didn’t have a good track record when it came to speaking to this guy. How the hell was he going to cope? Even gave a small nod and began to walk over to the fridge, but Isak noticed the gaze of all of the girls following him as he walked – Sana with a look of knowing, but the others with a look of adoration. Jonas made room for Even to stand in between him and Isak, and the gap was soon filled by the tall blonde boy, and the circle was closed off.

“Halla. What’s everyone talking about?” He looked between all of the boys, an eyebrow raised slightly, until his curious eyes landed directly on Isak.

“Him, actually,” Magnus pointed to Isak as he laughed under his breath, “there was going to be a fight, but Isak and Jonas are too boring for that.” Isak could hear Vilde's distinctive giggle at that, but he didn't feel like focusing on anything - let alone Magnus and Vilde's 'will they/won't they' relationship.  
“Oh really?” Isak could tell that Even was still trying to make eye contact, and he didn't need to look to know that the confident smirk was still plastered all over his face, but he refused to meet his eyes.

Never let anyone make eye contact with you Isak, they will be able to find your weakness. You display your emotions too much – it’s all in the eyes. Isak’s father’s message echoed in his head, as he shuddered slightly at the memory.  
That was it. He had to get out of there. Even was another thing on the list of things he couldn’t deal with – next to spiders and emotions.

“I’m going to my room.” Isak spoke abruptly, interrupting the conversation that was in full flow between his friends and Even, “Please don’t disturb me – I’ve got a lot of work to do for tomorrow.” He spoke in a monotonous voice, and exited the room as swiftly as possible - without looking back to see the confusion spread over everyone's face.

Only when he reached his room did he feel like he could breathe again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please let me know what you think. I kind of struggled to figure out where I wanted to go with this, and I promise there will be more Evak bonding coming up. I'm really sorry if the shadowhunter facts are not accurate - give me some creative license here. Thanks guys xx


	3. When we first connected

“Was it something I said?” Even questioned once Isak had abruptly stormed out of the room. 

“No, Even, don’t worry. Isak just takes some time to get used to people.” Jonas smiled at Even as he explained – easily making eye contact with him. It was interesting, Even observed, that Isak and Jonas were such polar opposites. Isak was grumpy and (from what he could tell) very cold to anyone or anything new, while Jonas radiated happiness and welcoming. Although, from what Even knew about the shadowhunters’ world, the greatest parabatai pairings were complete opposites – this allowed a wider range of strengths on the battlefield.

“Nah, it’s cool. I think I understand exactly what he’s feeling, don’t worry.” The words slipped out of Even’s mouth before he really knew what he was saying. He didn’t know anything about Isak, but he felt a strange empathy and connection to the younger boy. From the moment that he walked into that weapons room – he recognised unmistakable fear plastered all over his face. A fear associated with the innocence of youth that Even wished that he could still sport, but the universe had ripped that from his hands. When he was pulled away from his thoughts, he noticed that all of the residents of the institute were watching him with identical looks of curiosity.

“What is it?” Even laughed at them, in an attempt to shift their gaze away from him.

“You’re not like any kind of mundane I’ve ever met.” Vilde observed, her eyes gleaming with intrigue and mischief, as she smiled coyly towards Even. Even heard a scoff coming from Magnus, but chose to ignore it.

“Well, not many mundanes have seen what I have.” Even spoke easily, trying to control his voice and avoid the flashback that he could feel brewing in his mind. In that moment, he realised he had to get out of there. He knew shadowhunters – they would start asking questions that he didn’t want to answer. He avoided the shocked gazes as he left out of the same door that Isak had done just a few moments before. He didn’t really know where he was going at all, but Even has always been one to make his own rules. He just kept walking. 

******

Isak was leaning against his door, trying to decipher what happened, when he heard footsteps moving down the hall, accompanied by a quiet mumbling. He couldn’t make out what the person was saying, but it sounded like they were trying to make a tune. Isak could hear something about 5 women, but that was it. Once the mumbling and footsteps began to dissipate, Isak’s curiosity got the better of him, and he opened his door a fraction, peeping his head out of the door and looking down the hall. Isak couldn’t hold in a gasp when he saw a shadowy figure standing in front of the window at the end of the hallway. Even. Come on Isak, he thought to himself, say something – he’s obviously lost. Isak mentally cursed his inability to do anything in Even’s presence. It just didn’t make sense. 

“Hey, are you…” Isak called to Even, but trailed off when the mumbled singing stopped and he turned around. ‘Finish the sentence, finish the sentence, finish the sentence’ Isak willed as he saw the figure walk towards him. The closer Even got to him, the fewer shadows were engulfing him.

“Am I…?” Even smirked slightly, as he looked curiously into Isak’s eyes.

“Lost?” Isak bit his lip slightly, as he searched Even’s face for an answer. 

“Not anymore.” Even replied easily, making Isak blush slightly. Suddenly, and echo filled the institute, as Eskild’s voice bounced around the walls – attacking Isak’s ears like a gunshot.

“Even?” 

“Oh god.” Even sighed, as he looked around. “Hide me?” He looked at Isak with so much hope that Isak felt as though he simply couldn’t refuse. Opening the door wider, he gestured for Even to enter his room.

“Why do you need to hide?” Isak asked curiously, eyeing Even’s face, as he regarded the room with an unmistakably real smile.

“I just don’t feel like being found just yet.” Even shrugged, as he sat on the end of Isak’s bed. “You know, it’s interesting” Even continued after a slight pause,”that from everything that I know about you – I would never have imagined that you would want yellow curtains.”

“You don’t know anything about me though.” Isak defended, pulling the chair out from under his desk, and placing it directly in front of Even and sitting down on it.

“Perhaps not. But, why yellow though? Like, everything else in this room is either brown, black or white.” Even said, gesturing to the room around him 

“I’m not really sure. I don’t even like yellow that much, but for me, it just works.” Isak smiled slightly, as he looked at the satin curtains lying in front of his large window to his left. Even just smiled at him, speaking softly,

“Smiles suit you. You should smile more.” 

“Sometimes, I simply don’t have a reason to smile, Even.” Isak sighed, as he made eye contact with Even for the first time. Isak felt himself tense up, as looking into Even’s eyes was strangely intimate and felt as though Isak was journeying into Even’s soul. Even’s blue eyes shone in the afternoon sunlight and to Isak, they showed how terrified he was. Minutes passed, and neither boy moved, they just stared into each other’s eyes, revelling in the patterns of each other’s coloured irises. It felt as though they were sharing a conversation – exchanging information about their past through their eyes. For the first time in Isak’s life, he finally understood the meaning of the phrase ‘Eyes are the window to the soul’, and Even’s eyes were fascinating. The silence that settled between them was comfortable, and when Isak heard a scream, he was pulled away from his thoughts and Even’s inviting eyes. 

“What the hell was that?” Isak suddenly stood up, startled and immediately panicked. He grabbed his stele and seraph blade from his desk and ran to the door. Before he touched the door, he turned back to see Even looking at him with confusion and terror displayed on his face. 

“I think you should stay here. It may not be safe for you.” Isak spoke with as much conviction as he could muster, and to his surprise, Even simply nodded. It felt strange, Isak thought as he left the room, that he now felt as though he really knew Even well. It was as though they were simply meant to meet. They didn’t need to exchange words to have a conversation – he knew there was a connection. He briefly smiled, as he leapt down the stairs, when he heard the institute’s alarm go off. Demon attack. Isak shuddered and ran towards the sound of the blaring alarm – the library. However, as reached the entrance, where the large, heavy wooden doors to the institute are positioned, he saw a gaping hole – merely the remains of the hinges situated on one side of the doorway. Isak took a long breath out, steadying his nerves before, he brought the seraph blade up towards his face, 

“Adriel” Isak spoke, as his blade lit up, glowing brightly, despite the sunlight blaring through the entrance to the institute. Isak ran towards to the library, soon finding its doors in the same state as the entrance. From outside, he could see the other occupants of the institute desperately fighting off the horde of Moloch demons. Once he was inside the library, his gaze was immediately brought to Eskild being pinned up against a bookcase, its claws locking into Eskild’s neck. The flames that were coming out of the demons eyes were dangerously close to his face, but then it spoke – something that Isak had never seen before. 

“Where is he?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not 100% sure about this chapter, but please, feel free to share your thoughts :)  
> Thank you all, you lovely people! <3


End file.
